:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/46221278/GettyImages-458442090.0.jpg)
Giannelli Imbula has been at Olympique Marseille since July 2013. Giannelli Imbula has been linked with Chelsea (and the likes of Arsenal and Real Madrid) since October 2013. That has to be a bit annoying for Marseille. Though I suppose they would get paid well for their troubles.
"A box-to-box midfielder who has drawn comparisons with Patrick Vieira and Claude Makélélé, the 22-year-old French U-21 international has flourished in the Marseille first team under Marcelo Bielsa and reports today suggest Chelsea are pondering a £20m bid..."
The reports that The Guardian's Barry Glendenning's referencing are unfortunately Sun-based, which doesn't really hit the scale on the reputable side. That being said, Imbula's an interesting enough target in a believable enough scenario to be worth a note. Though according to reports in France, the 22-year-old isn't in a great hurry to leave.
...for the moment, the defensive midfielder player most used by Marcelo Bielsa, does not want to leave. He believes that staying at the OM is the best solution [especially with Euro 2016 coming up next season].
Despite those words and that pesky international-selection concern (hi, KDB!), it's assumed that Imbula's not long for Marseille (like his fellow young star Florian Thauvin, who's recently been linked with Spurs). Chelsea are clearly looking to strengthen the midfield -- the ongoing Pogba, Schneiderlin, et al. rumors attest to that -- and perhaps expecting Ruben Loftus-Cheek to truly step into that role next season is a bit naive on our part. We could do worse than Imbula.